Detailed picks
Parks, museums, cafes and pilgrimage sites. Only places that really exist.
55 places in 11 cities. Every place that comes from an itinerary links to its full day.
In Mitaka, about thirty minutes from Shinjuku. Original sketches, a Catbus playroom and the giant robot on the roof. Entry is only by advance booking for an exact date and time, and there is no ticket office on site.
Photo: Fotointheworld / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
An open-air park in Koganei with historic buildings that were moved here, among them a bathhouse and a row of shops that many guides link to Spirited Away, without official confirmation. Miyazaki designed the museum's mascot. Less crowded than the Ghibli Museum, and advance booking is not required.
Photo: lumoplank / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
A permanent Pokémon park inside Yomiuriland in Inagi, with Pokémon Forest and Sedge Town. It opened in 2026 and requires booking a ticket in advance. Since 1 November 2026 every visitor must show an original photo ID at the entrance, matched against the details registered at purchase, and a mismatch can mean no entry. For tourists that means the passport.
Photo: ぶい133 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
The hotel with the life-size Godzilla head peeking from the terrace on the eighth floor. There are Godzilla-themed rooms, and you can see the head from the street without staying there.
Photo: Another Believer / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
A simple, central hotel in the heart of Akihabara, with no themed design. The practical choice for those who want to sleep within walking distance of the shops.
Photo: Nelson Pérez / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Two branches: in Nihonbashi in Tokyo, which reopened on 17 June 2026 after a renovation, with a new Pikachu show, and in Shinsaibashi in Osaka, on floor 9 of Daimaru. At both, entry is by online reservation only. A whole month opens at once at 18:00 Japan time, and the dates are published on the official site. The seats are gone within minutes.
Photo: Millethills / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
Three permanent branches: at Solamachi in Tokyo Skytree on floor 4, at Daimaru Shinsaibashi in Osaka, and at Canal City Hakata in Fukuoka. A pink Kirby burger, a Maxim Tomato pizza and souvenir plates, and each branch has its own dishes. Without a reservation you get in only if a table is free.
Photo: lazy fri13th / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
A whole district of multi-story shops: Radio Kaikan for figures, Lashinbang and Mandarake for secondhand, and Super Potato for retro games. A full day, and best on a Sunday when the main street is closed to traffic.
Photo: AXP Photography / Pexels
About 200 m of manga and anime shops aimed at women, west of the Sunshine 60 tower, mostly doujinshi and used merchandise, including K-BOOKS and Mandarake. The Swallowtail butler cafe is here too, by advance booking. The Animate flagship store is about 4 minutes' walk away.
Photo: Dick Thomas Johnson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
A multi-story shopping center from the seventies that became a maze of collectors' shops: vintage toys, original cels from animated films, rare manga and watches. Five minutes by train from Shinjuku.
Photo: Flickr user: Danny Choo Tokyo, Japan https://www.flickr.com/people/dannychoo/ / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Bandai's official Gunpla store in Odaiba, on the seventh floor of DiverCity. Kits from every generation, kits sold only here, and tables for building on site. Entry is free. The Unicorn statue that stood in the plaza below was on display until 31 August 2026, and the store continues to operate.
Photo: Syced / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
The stairs with the red railing from the final scene of 'Kimi no Na wa'. In the Yotsuya neighborhood, free, and it takes five minutes. Remember that this is a residential neighborhood.
Photo: Higa4 / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
Shibuya · One Piece
The official One Piece store: clothes, toys, accessories and costumes. The main branch is in MAGNET by SHIBUYA109 on floor 6, 10:00 to 21:00, and not in Parco as some guides write. There are also branches on Character Street in Tokyo Station, in Harakado in Harajuku, in DiverCity in Odaiba and in Sunshine City in Ikebukuro, and two in Osaka.
Tokyo Station · Shonen Jump
The official store of Weekly Shonen Jump: One Piece, My Hero Academia, Dragon Ball and the rest of the Jump series. On Tokyo Character Street, on the basement floor of Tokyo Station on the Yaesu side, 10:00 to 20:30. The same street has dozens more official character shops, among them the One Piece store. On release days entry is by advance lottery.
Harajuku · Sailor Moon
The permanent official Sailor Moon store, in Laforet Harajuku on floor B0.5. Clothes, bags, makeup and items that come out here before anywhere else. It was redesigned in April 2024. 11:00 to 20:00, following Laforet's hours.
Akihabara · Anime clothing
The official store of Cospa, a long-standing maker of official anime clothing: T-shirts, hoodies and bags from hundreds of series, from subtle designs you can wear every day to full prints. About 2,500 new items a year. On floor 3 of Atre Akihabara 1, right next to JR Akihabara Station, 10:00 to 21:00. Cosplay costumes are sold at the company's second shop, G-Store Akiba.
Two branches: in Ikebukuro in Tokyo and in Umeda in Osaka. The branch in Saitama closed in January 2023. The menu changes with the collaboration of the moment, for example the 20th anniversary of Okami from June 2026.
Opened on 12 June 2026 in the Paselabo Tower in Shinjuku, next to Shinjuku Station: a shop on the ground floor and a cafe on floors 2 and 3, with a menu of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and NieR. Open 11:00 to 22:00. The old branch in Akihabara closed in March 2025.
The best-known maid cafe chain, with songs, spells and games. There is an hourly entry fee on top of the price of your order, and photographing the waitresses is not allowed unless you pay.
Opened in 2001, and presents itself as the first cafe of its kind in Japan. On floor 4 of the Onoden Building, with classic uniforms and a calm atmosphere. Suits those who want to see the phenomenon without much of a show.
In Ikebukuro, it collaborates with a different series each period. Themed drinks and character coasters that you get with your order. The series changes every few weeks.
The flagship store in Ikebukuro, inside the Sunshine City mall. Life-size Pokémon statues and exclusive merchandise. There are more branches in Tokyo, but this is the big one.
A former elementary school with over 300,000 volumes of manga on open walls, and you may sit and read as much as you like. There is a shelf in foreign languages. An excellent place for a rainy day in Kyoto. ¥1,200, 10:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:30. Closed on Wednesdays, and also on 24 November, from 26 December to 6 January and from 25 to 29 January 2027.
Photo: Party Lin / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Kyoto · Evangelion
Toei's film studios in Uzumasa, an open park where period dramas are filmed, which was renovated and reopened in March 2026 under the name UZUMASA KYOTO VILLAGE. At the center stands Evangelion Unit-01 at a height of 15 meters, and you can enter the entry plug and stand on its palm. ¥2,800 from junior high school age and ¥1,600 for a child from age 3, a price valid until the second renovation stage in spring 2027. Admission closes an hour before the park closes.
Price checked October 2026
Super Mario world with the Mario Kart race and the Yoshi ride, and next to it the Harry Potter, Minions and Jurassic Park areas. An Express Pass is worth buying, because without it the wait for a major attraction reaches two hours.
Photo: Jugdeep Gill / Pexels
The Akihabara of Osaka: retro games, figures and maid cafes. Smaller than Akihabara and less crowded with tourists.
Photo: Clemens Vasters / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
The One Piece evening show in 2026 runs from 30 July to 19 November: one show each evening at 18:45, about eighty minutes, with fire, water, and Luffy and the Straw Hat crew. You need a separate ticket for the show, in addition to the park ticket, and there are days with no show.
Nintendo
The area inside Universal in Osaka. A Power-Up Band that activates features around the area, the Mario Kart race and the Yoshi ride. At busy hours you need a timed entry ticket for the area itself, in addition to the park ticket. Since 5 January 2026 you get it only in the official app, and the band does not get you into the area.
Closed from 30 November 2026 to 4 March 2027 for an elevator replacement and interior work, and reopens on 5 March. Entry is ¥700, and ¥900 after the reopening. In Takarazuka near Kobe, dedicated to the 'god of manga', the creator of Astro Boy and Black Jack. There is an animation studio where you make a short clip, and rare manuscripts.
Photo: DVMG / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
An outdoor ninja park on Awaji Island, with the Hidden Leaf Village, scrolls and missions. Entry to the park is free and you pay per attraction: the basic Naruto ticket is from ¥3,300 for an adult. You get there by direct bus from the Sannomiya bus terminal in Kobe, about 45 minutes, but there are only two direct trips a day in each direction.
An outdoor role-playing park where you get a map and real quests, fight monsters and collect items. In the same complex as the Naruto park, but on a separate ticket: from ¥3,400 for an adult for the basic ticket.
Closed for renovation from 13 October 2026 until spring 2027: the wooden obstacle course and the zip line are being replaced by a new, taller obstacle course themed on the Shin-chan films. Until then only the Nonbiri no Harappa play area is open, and the shop and the food truck are closed too. Aimed at children, in the same complex on Awaji Island, on a separate ticket.
Nijigen no Mori
Luxury glamping on Awaji Island, next to Nijigen no Mori: standalone cocoon units, with changing collaborations with the park's series. Expensive, and suits an overnight stay after a day in the parks. If a room themed on a particular character matters to you, check this when you book.
Dazaifu · Demon Slayer
A shrine more than 1,350 years old at the foot of Mount Homan, which has become a pilgrimage site for Demon Slayer fans. The shrine's name is the same as Tanjiro's family name, it was built as the guardian of the demon gate to the north-east of the Dazaifu government office, and the robes of the mountain monks resemble his haori. Important to know: there is no official link between the shrine and the series and the creator has never confirmed one, this is a fan interpretation. Entry is free, and it rounds off a visit to Dazaifu Tenmangu.
Hita, Oita · Attack on Titan
In Hita in Oita Prefecture, the hometown of the creator Hajime Isayama. Original drawings, works from his childhood and large-scale displays. ¥500 for an adult, and free under age 18. A combined ticket with the Annex at the Sapporo brewery in central Hita costs ¥1,000 and is valid for two days. Open 9:30 to 16:00 on weekdays and until 17:00 on weekends, with irregular closing days. A day trip from Fukuoka on the Yufu train from Hakata, and from Hita Station about 20 minutes by car.
Price checked October 2026
Hita, Oita · Attack on Titan
The dam, 94 meters high, is the Wall of the series, and at its foot stand bronze statues of Eren, Mikasa and Armin as children, looking up at the wall. Stand behind them and you get the angle of the scene. A statue of Levi stands in the south plaza of Hita Station, and character panels are scattered across seven sites in the city. From the Hita bus terminal to the Nakagawara stop it is 25 minutes, and from there a 20-minute walk to the dam. The statues are outdoors, near the museum.
A statue of the RX-93ff about 25 meters tall at LaLaport Fukuoka, the tallest life-size Gundam. Watching is free, with a show every hour between 10:00 and 18:00 and a projection on the wall in the evening. After the Unicorn statue in Odaiba came down in August 2026, this is the only life-size Gundam left in Japan. There is no train station next to it, and you get there by bus from Hakata or from Tenjin.
The rural station and the taxi stand from the scene where Taki searches for Mitsuha. Ten minutes by train from Takayama, and it fits into a day there.
Photo: Asturio Cantabrio / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Fujiyoshida · Naruto
A permanent themed area inside the Fuji-Q Highland park at the foot of Mount Fuji: a recreation of the Hidden Leaf Village, the Hokage Rock, a 3D shooting ride and themed food stalls. Since Evangelion World and Attack on Titan closed, this is the only permanent anime area in the park. Entry and ride prices change, so check the official website beforehand. The adjoining hotel has a Naruto ninja suite.
Naruto
The official hotel of Fuji-Q, right next to the park. It has a Naruto ninja suite, which opened in 2019 and has puzzles to solve during the stay: from ¥17,500 per person when four sleep in the room. There is also a Thomas room and a Lisa and Gaspard room. Hotel guests enter the park 15 minutes before opening.
In Kawasaki, between Tokyo and Yokohama. Original drawings, an Anywhere Door on the roof and a themed cafe. There is no ticket office on site: you buy in advance on the official ticket site, which has English, ¥1,000. There are seven entry times a day, every hour on the hour from 10:00 to 16:00, and each entry closes one hour after it starts.
Photo: Aimaimyi / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
A museum and park for young children around Japan's best-loved hero. Aimed at ages zero to six, and those who come without children will not find it interesting. Floors 2 and 3 require an online ticket for a set time.
Photo: Tokumeigakarinoaoshima / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The crossing from the opening of Slam Dunk, with the sea behind it. In Kamakura, on the Enoden line. A narrow spot with traffic, so take your photo from the sidewalk and not from the tracks.
Photo: Dick Thomas Johnson / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Yokohama · Young children
Anpanman is the well-known children's character in Japan, and his museum in Minato Mirai is built for young children and not for collectors. ¥2,200 to ¥2,800 for every visitor from age one and up, an adult pays the same, and a baby under age one enters free. 10:00 to 17:00, last entry at 16:00. Floors 2 and 3 require an online ticket for a set time. The first floor, with the shops and the food, is open free without a ticket.
Yokohama · Pokemon
One of the largest Pokemon Center branches in Japan, on the eighth floor, a few minutes' walk from Yokohama Station. A Union Room where you can play on the spot, and an interior design that works in the sea theme of the port city. 10:30 to 20:30 every day. Important to know: the Marui City Yokohama mall closed at the end of February 2026, but the store stayed in exactly the same place and the building changed its name to Yokohama Sky Building. Old maps and guides still write Marui.
A whole park inside the Aichi Expo park, with Dondoko Forest, Ghibli's Grand Warehouse and the Hill of Youth. The ticket is a day pass: the Standard pass, for three areas, is ¥3,300 on weekdays and ¥3,800 on weekends, and the Premium pass, for all five areas, ¥7,300 and ¥7,800. Only the Grand Warehouse has an entry time. Tickets go on sale two months ahead, on the 10th at 14:00 Japan time.
Photo: Kyu3 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Nagoya · Cosplay
One of the three large electronics and otaku districts in Japan, together with Akihabara and Den Den Town in Osaka. Covered alleys with new and second-hand anime and manga shops, figures, cosplay, a four-floor Mandarake branch and maid cafes. The walk itself is free. Osu is also one of the venues of the World Cosplay Summit, whose home is Nagoya.
The current building closes for good on 11 January 2027, and a new one, about 8 minutes on foot from Yura Station, opens in spring 2027, with no exact date yet. Until then 09:30 to 17:30, last entry 17:00, ¥700. In the hometown of the creator of Detective Conan, in Tottori Prefecture. An interactive museum with puzzles and illusion art, and the whole town is designed around the series, including a dedicated train station.
Photo: Hsu, Tzu-hsun / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Fully closed from 19 October 2026 to 8 January 2027. Floors 1 and 2 reopen on 9 January, and floor 3 (the cafe and library) only in early April 2027. From January to March it is also closed on many weekdays, so check the calendar on its website. Entry is ¥1,300. A futuristic building on the water in Miyagi, dedicated to Shotaro Ishinomori, the creator of Kamen Rider and Cyborg 009. The building was damaged in the 2011 tsunami and reopened.
Photo: Asturio Cantabrio / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
A historic wooden bathhouse in Matsuyama, one of the oldest in Japan, and the inspiration for the bathhouse in Spirited Away. It operates as a real onsen, and you can go in and bathe.
Photo: z tanuki / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
In Saitama, one of the first pilgrimage shrines of anime fans, thanks to 'Lucky Star'. It has illustrated ema plaques that the fans hang.
Photo: LERK / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
A town in Ibaraki Prefecture that has fully adopted 'Girls und Panzer': cardboard characters in every shop, a tank in the square and themed menus. A living example of anime tourism that sustains a whole town.
Photo: LERK / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)
In Chichibu in Saitama, the places from 'Anohana'. About an hour and a half from Ikebukuro, and it combines with a nature trip in the area.
Photo: sugar jet / Pexels
Higurashi When They Cry
The village of thatched roofs that inspired Hinamizawa in the 'Higurashi' series. The village itself is a World Heritage site, and most visitors come to it with no connection to the series.
Photo: NaturEye Conservation / Pexels
In Himi in Toyama Prefecture, dedicated to the creator of Ninja Hattori. Far from the usual route, and suits those who are already traveling to the Noto Peninsula or to Toyama.
